Passwordless Authentication: The Future of Access Control

Why Passwords Are Failing Businesses

Imagine a data breach traced back to nothing more than a stolen employee password. It sounds avoidable, yet it remains one of the most common ways attackers break in. The Verizon 2023 Data Breach Investigations Report found that 74% of breaches involve a human element, with stolen or weak passwords playing a central role.

The IBM 2024 Cost of a Data Breach Report also confirms that compromised credentials are the leading cause of breaches worldwide, responsible for 15% of cases.

The business consequences are severe. Credential-based attacks are not only the hardest to detect, often taking nearly a year to uncover, they also cause extended downtime, regulatory scrutiny and lasting reputational damage.

For decision-makers already under pressure to reduce risk and control costs, passwords have become a liability that weakens both security and productivity.

This is why passwordless authentication is gaining momentum. It is central to zero trust access control and modern identity and access management (IAM), providing phishing-resistant protection that removes the weakest link in the chain.

In short, traditional passwords are no longer fit for purpose. This article explains what passwordless authentication is, why it matters for businesses, the risks of staying with passwords, how adoption works in practice, the challenges of rollout, and what the future of access control will look like.

What Is Passwordless Authentication?

Passwordless authentication is a method of verifying identity that removes the need for traditional passwords, relying instead on stronger alternatives such as biometrics, FIDO2 security keys, mobile authenticators, or trusted devices.

Instead of typing in a memorised password, a user proves who they are through something they have (like a hardware key or mobile device) or something they are (like a fingerprint or facial scan).

This approach eliminates the risks that come with weak, stolen, or reused passwords. Unlike multi-factor authentication (MFA), which often still depends on a password as the first step, passwordless authentication is phishing-resistant from the start.

For example, FIDO2/WebAuthn uses cryptographic keys bound to a device, which cannot be intercepted or reused by attackers in the same way as a password.

Core passwordless methods include:

1. Biometric verification: fingerprint, facial recognition, or other unique identifiers stored securely on a device.
2. Cryptographic keys: based on the FIDO2 and WebAuthn standards, using private keys stored on the device and public keys registered with the service.
3. Device-based authenticators: mobile authenticator apps or push notifications confirm login attempts without a password.
4. Hardware tokens: physical keys such as YubiKeys provide strong authentication that avoids centralised password databases.

Analysts predict rapid adoption. Gartner projects that by 2025, more than 50% of workforce logins and 20% of customer authentications will be passwordless, up from fewer than 10% in 2021 (Gartner). This shift reflects both the usability improvements and the reduced risk profile of passwordless systems.

This means passwordless authentication is not just a security upgrade, it is part of a wider transition to zero trust access control and modern IAM frameworks, where every login must be verified and resistant to phishing.

Passwordless authentication is an identity verification method that replaces passwords with phishing-resistant approaches like biometrics, FIDO2 keys, and mobile authenticators, strengthening both user experience and zero-trust access control.

Why Passwordless Authentication Matters for Businesses

Passwords don’t just create security risks — they create financial and operational costs. Forrester Research estimates each password reset costs about $70 in IT help desk labour. Gartner notes that 20–50% of all IT help desk calls are password-related (Gartner), meaning a mid-sized company with 1,000 employees could spend over $500,000 a year on resets alone.

Beyond the direct costs, studies show employees waste over six hours annually typing or resetting passwords, reducing productivity across the workforce.

The security impact is even greater. The IBM 2024 Cost of a Data Breach Report found that stolen credentials are the most common initial attack vector, responsible for 16% of breaches worldwide. These attacks are particularly damaging because they are difficult to detect, often going unnoticed for months while attackers move laterally through systems.

By adopting passwordless authentication, businesses can:

1. Reduce breach risk - phishing-resistant authentication removes the weakest link.
2. Lower IT support costs - fewer resets and lockouts free IT staff for strategic work.
3. Boost workforce productivity - faster, simpler login methods reduce wasted time.
4. Align with compliance – passwordless logins support GDPR, ISO 27001, and NIST phishing-resistant MFA requirements.

The business case is proven. A Forrester Consulting study commissioned by Microsoft found that organisations using Entra AD (formerly Azure AD) passwordless authentication achieved a 240% ROI over three years, driven by fewer resets, reduced incident costs, and improved productivity.

The key takeaway is that passwordless authentication is more than a technical improvement, it delivers measurable financial savings, reduced cyber risk, and stronger compliance alignment for SMEs and mid-market companies.

The Business Risks of Staying with Passwords

Sticking with passwords leaves businesses exposed to some of the most common and damaging attack vectors.

Once attackers have a valid login, they can often remain undetected for months. IBM reports that credential-based breaches take an average of 328 days to identify and contain, far longer than most other attack types.

The financial consequences are significant. A single breach linked to stolen credentials can result in millions in remediation, lost revenue, and regulatory fines.

Regulatory scrutiny is increasing: both GDPR and ISO 27001 require robust access controls, meaning businesses that persist with outdated password-based systems risk non-compliance alongside direct breach costs.

Operationally, passwords continue to drag on IT capacity. Gartner estimates that 20-50% of help desk calls are password-related. For already stretched IT teams in SMEs, this is resource that could otherwise be used to advance digital transformation or strengthen cyber security.

This means businesses that fail to move beyond passwords remain at higher risk of phishing, credential stuffing, and ransomware, while also carrying the ongoing burden of wasted IT time and compliance gaps. In the context of zero-trust access control and modern identity management, passwords are an outdated liability.

Continuing to rely on passwords exposes businesses to long detection times, high remediation costs, regulatory penalties, and persistent IT inefficiencies.

Passwordless Authentication in Action

The shift to passwordless authentication is not theoretical, it is already reshaping how organisations secure access. Microsoft has adopted passwordless across its 180,000 employees, cutting authentication costs by 87% and significantly reducing account compromises.

Accenture provisioned passwordless credentials to more than 790,000 staff, with 70% of Windows logins now password-free, reporting faster sign-ins, fewer lockouts, and reduced IT support tickets.

Sectors with heavy compliance demands are moving fastest. In healthcare, 68% of organisations plan to implement passwordless by 2025 to protect patient records and meet regulatory standards. In financial services, banks and insurers are leading adopters of FIDO2 keys and biometric authentication, replacing password logins with phishing-resistant methods.

Even in the public sector, the NHS has introduced biometric passwordless login for its patient app, improving both security and adoption.

Technology enablers are driving this adoption. FIDO2 and WebAuthn standards allow cryptographic logins that cannot be phished or reused. Passkeys, backed by Apple, Google, and Microsoft, are positioned as the successor to passwords, syncing securely across devices.

For businesses, passwordless logins are typically enabled via hardware security keys (e.g., YubiKeys) or mobile-based authenticators, balancing strong security with convenience for the workforce.

In short, passwordless authentication is already delivering measurable value across enterprises, healthcare, finance, and public services, proving that a passkeys vs passwords model is not only more secure but also better aligned with productivity and compliance needs.

Real-world deployments in Microsoft, Accenture, healthcare, and finance show that passwordless authentication reduces IT costs, strengthens compliance, and provides phishing-resistant access control.

Implementation Challenges and How to Overcome Them

Adopting passwordless authentication is a major step forward, but it is not without challenges. Legacy applications remain one of the biggest obstacles. Many business systems were built around usernames and passwords, and not all support FIDO2 or WebAuthn. During its rollout, Accenture found that discovering and adapting every password-reliant application across its global IT estate was a significant effort (Accenture).

User acceptance can also pose resistance. Employees are accustomed to passwords, and some are wary of biometrics or hardware tokens. Surveys highlight that 65% of employees would consider leaving their job if authentication was too frustrating or invasive, underscoring the need to balance security with usability (HYPR/Yubico 2023 Study).

Costs and logistics are another barrier. Hardware keys and biometric systems require upfront investment, which can seem daunting for SMEs. However, many overcome this by starting with mobile-based authenticators that use devices staff already carry.

A Phased Rollout Approach

Businesses that succeed with passwordless follow a clear process:

1. Start with high-risk accounts – Prioritise privileged or administrator logins where breach risk is highest.
2. Pilot in selected teams – Run small-scale deployments to identify issues and collect feedback.
3. Integrate with IAM and zero trust – Align passwordless logins with identity and access management policies, ensuring consistency with zero trust access control.
4. Communicate the benefits – Explain to employees how passwordless improves both security and ease of use.
5. Prepare fallback options – Build recovery plans for lost devices or locked-out users, avoiding business disruption.

This means implementation is not just a technical shift but also a change management exercise. By phasing adoption and framing it around reduced friction and stronger compliance, businesses can gain employee buy-in and see faster returns.

The biggest challenges in adopting passwordless authentication are legacy systems, user resistance, and upfront costs, but a phased rollout tied to IAM and zero trust frameworks makes implementation achievable.

The Future of Access Control

Passwords were created in the 1960s and are no longer adequate for today’s threat landscape. Analysts agree they are being phased out in favour of phishing-resistant alternatives. Gartner predicts that by 2025, more than 50% of workforce logins and 20% of customer authentications will be passwordless, up from fewer than 10% in 2021.

The market reflects this momentum. The global passwordless authentication industry is projected to reach over $21 billion in 2025 and nearly $86 billion by 2033. This growth is fuelled by major technology providers standardising support. Apple, Google, and Microsoft have jointly backed passkeys, enabling cryptographic login credentials that sync securely across devices.

For businesses, the future is about stronger access control integrated into broader strategies. Passwordless is becoming a cornerstone of zero trust architecture, where every login attempt must be verified and phishing-resistant. It also fits seamlessly into modern identity and access management (IAM) platforms, reducing the reliance on vulnerable password databases.

This means the shift to passwordless is not optional, it is already becoming the default. Businesses that act now will gain the benefits of reduced breach exposure, lower IT overheads, and compliance alignment, while those that delay risk being left behind as standards evolve.

Passwordless authentication is becoming central to zero trust and IAM frameworks, with analysts predicting it will dominate workforce logins by 2025 and deliver significant ROI for businesses.

Final Thoughts

Moving Towards a Passwordless Future

Passwords are no longer protecting businesses, they are exposing them. The IBM 2024 Cost of a Data Breach Report highlights stolen credentials as the leading cause of breaches, while Forrester estimates every password reset costs around $70 in IT labour. These figures underline the reality: reliance on passwords drives both cyber risk and operational inefficiency.

The lesson is simple: compliance is the starting point; what comes next is what actually keeps you safe. Moving to passwordless authentication removes a major source of breaches, strengthens access control, and aligns with zero trust and identity and access management (IAM) strategies.

For decision-makers, the choice is whether to keep absorbing the costs of an outdated model or to move to one that is proven to reduce risk and save money. Passwordless authentication is not experimental, it is already deployed across enterprises, healthcare, finance, and even public services like the NHS.

In short, passwordless authentication is the future of access control. It offers businesses stronger security, lower IT costs, and a login experience that employees actually prefer.

Passwordless authentication eliminates the risks and costs of traditional logins, delivering phishing-resistant access control that is better aligned with zero trust, IAM, and modern business needs.

Passwords vs MFA vs Passwordless Authentication

The key takeaway is: passwordless authentication outperforms both passwords and MFA on security, cost reduction, compliance alignment, and user experience, making it the future standard for business access control.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. What is passwordless authentication?
   Answer: Passwordless authentication is a method of verifying identity that replaces passwords with phishing-resistant factors such as biometrics, FIDO2/WebAuthn cryptographic keys, or mobile authenticators. It removes the risk of credential theft and improves login speed.
2. How secure is passwordless authentication compared to MFA?
   Answer: Traditional MFA still depends on passwords, which remain a common attack vector. Passwordless authentication is stronger because it eliminates the password entirely. Methods like FIDO2 keys are resistant to phishing, replay, and credential stuffing attacks (NIST SP 800-63).
   
3. Which industries are adopting passkeys and passwordless methods fastest?
   Answer: Finance and healthcare lead adoption. In healthcare, 68% of organisations plan to implement passwordless by 2025. Financial services are rolling out passkeys and FIDO2 keys to secure sensitive transactions. The NHS has also adopted biometric passwordless login for its patient app.
4. What challenges do businesses face when rolling out passwordless authentication?
   Answer: The main hurdles are legacy applications, upfront costs for hardware tokens, and user acceptance. Accenture found that identifying all password-reliant apps across its IT environment was a major task. A phased rollout starting with high-risk accounts, paired with clear communication, helps overcome resistance.
5. Does passwordless authentication support compliance with GDPR and ISO 27001?
   Answer: Yes. Passwordless authentication strengthens access control, aligning with GDPR Article 32’s requirement for “appropriate technical measures” and ISO 27001 Annex A.9’s identity management standards. NIST classifies FIDO2 security keys as AAL3, the highest level of authenticator assurance.
6. How do passkeys compare to passwords?
   Answer: Passkeys are cryptographic login credentials that replace passwords entirely. Backed by Apple, Google, and Microsoft, passkeys are phishing-resistant and sync securely across devices. They provide faster login (around 8 seconds vs 70 seconds for a password+OTP).
7. What should CIOs and IT leaders prioritise when planning a rollout?
   Answer: CIOs should prioritise integrating passwordless with their identity and access management (IAM) platform, ensuring alignment with zero trust frameworks. They should also focus on high-risk accounts first, plan fallback options for lost devices, and prepare business cases highlighting ROI and compliance benefits.